The Sonatas of Ferdinando Turrini (Salò, 1745 – Brescia, 1829) are a precious testimony to the beginning of the sonata form in Italy. They are original, rich in interesting features, and attracted the attention of distinguished figures of themusical and cultural world, ranging from W. Beckford to W. S. Newman, and from G. d’Annunzio to A. B. Michelangeli. In the first half of the twentieth century, several sonatas were published, with the editing of eminent pianists such as S. Cesi, A. Longo, E. Marciano and M. Vitali. This recording presents the first performance of two unpublished collections,Raccolta Mangili (1795) and Sei Sonate da Cembalo Coll’accompagnamento d’un Violino ed una Fuga in fine a Cembalo solo (1784), and arises from our conviction that these pieces are a valuable contribution both to the rediscovery of the Italian musical patrimony, particularly as regards the sonata production, and to the study of the particular transition period inwhich the piano gradually superseded the harpsichord.
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